Army, Florida Prevail in Thrillers to Cap Conference Semifinal Thursday

Conference tournaments entered the semifinal stage on Thursday, with teams booking trips to their conference championship games. 

Here are the results. Be sure to check USA Lacrosse Magazine’s Division I Championship Central and TV Listings for guides to this weekend’s action.

AAC

(1) James Madison 13, (4) Cincinnati 7

In its first AAC tournament game, James Madison found itself down by two midway through the first quarter. But the Dukes rebounded, spurning Cincinnati 13-7 and earning a trip to Saturday’s tournament finals. Isabella Peterson’s four goals and two assists led the day.

The game was close throughout the first three quarters, with James Madison leading 7-5 and 8-5 when Maddie Epke took a feed from Peterson at 11:50 of the third. That would be the only goal of the third quarter. 

Peterson scored twice to open the fourth quarter, her second goal giving the Dukes a 10-5 lead with 11:04 to play. Camryn Callaghan struck for the Bearcats at 10:15, but Olivia Mattis scored at 5:53 and Tai Jankowski put one in the back of the net 33 ticks later to put JMU up 12-6.

The Dukes will get a crack at the AAC crown Saturday.

(2) Florida 12, (3) East Carolina 9

ECU had Florida on the ropes, but the Gators scored five unanswered goals in the fourth quarter to turn a 9-7 deficit into a 12-9 victory.

Emma LoPinto scored the tying and go-ahead goals, while 5-foot-11 attacker Maggi Hall was force to be reckoned with all day. Hall factored in eight of Florida's nine goals with three goals and five assists.

AAC Championship – (2) Florida vs. (1) James Madison, Saturday, May 6, 12 p.m.

ASUN

(1) Liberty 21 vs. (4) Queens 8

Liberty’s quest for its first NCAA bid in program history continued with a 21-8 rout of fourth-seeded Queens. Cami Merkel poured in five goals and one assist, and Mackenzie Lehman added four goals and an assist. 

Queens’ saw a historic season of its own — its first at the Division I level — end at 10-8. Elise Grissett tallied a hat trick and an assist.

The Flames led 5-3 after the first quarter and proceeded to score the next nine goals to go in front 15-3. They shut Queens out until 5:30 was left in the third quarter.

(2) Jacksonville 17, (3) Coastal Carolina 5

Not the No. 1 seed? Not a problem for Jacksonville. The defending ASUN champion Dolphins blitzed Coastal Carolina early, racing out to a 7-0 lead and going on to win 17-5.

Grace Hobson quarterbacked the offense, finishing with one goal and game highs of five assists and six points. Brianna Samuels and Lauren Craft each posted three goals and one assist. Starting Jacksonville goalie Addy Tysdal stopped eight of the 11 shots she faced (.727). Claire Martell made 13 saves for Coastal Carolina. 

Jacksonville will face Liberty in the conference championship. Liberty clipped the Dolphins for the first time in program history, 12-10, in the regular-season meeting.

ASUN Championship – (2) Jacksonville vs. (1) Liberty, Saturday, May 6, 1 p.m. (ESPN+)

BIG TEN

(1) Northwestern 18, (4) Michigan 11

Tewaaraton candidate Izzy Scane scored four goals and added a season-high four assists, surpassing the 100-point mark for the second time in her career and leading Northwestern to an 18-11 Big Ten semifinal win over Michigan in Columbus, Ohio. Scane leads the nation with 76 goals.

The Wildcats won their 16th straight game, the longest streak for the program since winning 23 straight games over the 2011-12 seasons, and improved to 14-0 all-time against Michigan.

(2) Maryland 15, (6) Rutgers 9

Maryland scored the first eight goals and Chrissy Thomas tallied six assists as the Terps cruised to a 15-9 win over Rutgers in the second semifinal.

Eloise Clevenger scored all of her team-high four goals in sequence during the opening salvo. Shaylan Ahearn fueled the outburst with a game-high 10 draw controls. 

Big Ten Championship – (2) Maryland vs. (1) Northwestern, Saturday, May 6, 8 p.m. (Big Ten Network)

CAA 

(1) Stony Brook 18, (4) Delaware 6

New conference, same result — or at least it’s heading in that direction. No. 10 Stony Brook got four goals, two assists and 12 draw controls from Ellie Masera in an 18-6 CAA semifinal win over Delaware at Towson. 

Kailyn Hart added four goals and two assists for Stony Brook.

The Seawolves have not lost a conference tournament game since 2012, a span of 17 games that includes Stony Brook’s nearly decade-long dominance of the America East. The game didn’t come easy to Stony Brook, which ran the table in the CAA regular season, at first. Two goals from Delaware’s Lizzie Hsu put Delaware up 3-1 at 5:19 of the first quarter. After a goal from SBU defender Clare Levy, Hsu’s third of the day made it 4-2 Blue Hens. But Stony Brook surged from there, outscoring Delaware 14-2 the rest of the way.

Stony Brook will vie for a CAA crown in its first year in the league on Saturday.

(2) Towson 9, (3) Drexel 6

The second CAA semifinal was a low-scoring affair, with host Towson breaking away late for a 9-6 win. Blare Pearre (4 goals, 1 assist) and Lindsay Marshall (3 goals) led the Tigers offensively, while Blair Goodrich bolstered their defensive efforts with five caused turnovers and three ground balls. 

Jo Torres stopped eight shots for Towson, and Jenika Cuocco made 10 saves for Drexel.

Back-to-back goals from Pearre put Towson ahead 6-3 with 5:22 left in the third quarter. Maddie Fowler scored with 11 seconds to go to bring Drexel within two, the Dragons’ first goal since the 13:50 mark of the quarter. But Marshall scored the first two of the fourth quarter, extending the lead to 8-4, the Tigers’ largest of the day. Corinne Bednarik cut the deficit to three at 5:52, but Marshall struck again 59 seconds later. 

CAA Championship – (2) Towson vs. (1) Stony Brook, Saturday, May 6, 12:30 p.m. (Lacrosse TV)

MAC

(1) Robert Morris 14, (4) Youngstown State 8

Down 7-6 with 11:32 left in the third quarter, MAC top seed Robert Morris rattled off eight unanswered goals to top Youngstown State 14-8. Chelsea Coleman scored three of her four goals during the 8-0 run. She also tallied one assist, while Lilli Hadden posted three goals and one helper.

MAC Defensive Player of the Year Kathleen Kelly caused three turnovers, and Jamie Keller stopped eight of the 16 shots she faced (.500). Abby Yesko’s hat trick led YSU.

(3) Central Michigan 18, (2) Kent State 7

Central Michigan became the first lower seed to win a women's semifinal game in 2023, downing second-seeded Kent State 18-7. Skye Deprado scored four goals for CMU, while Audrey Whiteside (3 G, 2 A) and Kendall Hoyt (1 G, 4 A) posted a game-high five points. 

Kenzie Sklar tallied four goals for Kent State.

CMU jetted out to a 6-0 lead and led 7-1 at halftime. The dominance continued after the beak, with Central Michigan scoring the first four goals of the third quarter and taking an 11-1 lead when Kendall Hoyt scored at 9:05.

MAC Championship – (3) Central Michigan vs. (1) Robert Morris, Saturday, May 6, 3 p.m. (ESPN+)

NORTHEAST

(1) Sacred Heart 12, (4) Saint Francis 6

Lydia Werlau tallied five goals, while Emma Kittredge chipped in with four goals as Sacred Heart beat Saint Francis 12-6.

The Pioneers wasted no time getting on the board, jetting out to an insurmountable 8-2 run when Shae Insinga scored unassisted with 6:13 left in the first half. Werlau scored a hat trick and Kittredge netted two goals during the fast start. 

(2) Wagner 10, (3) LIU 4

Lauren DiStefano stood on her head for 15 saves to lead Wagner passed LIU 10-4.

The Seahawks used a pair of four-goal spurts in the first two quarters to take an 8-2 lead before the break. The two teams then waged a defensive effort. Neither scored in the third quarter. Stephanie Colver broke the stalemate at 10:31 of the fourth quarter and followed with another at 9:48 to put Wagner in front 10-2. 

Katz scored on an assist from Francesca Vasile-Cozzo with 1:01 remaining, LIU’s first goal since 1:29 of the second quarter. Vasile-Cozzo also assisted a Julia Trainor goal with 25 seconds on the clock.

Northeast Championship – (2) Wagner vs. (1) Sacred Heart, Saturday, May 6, 1 p.m. (NEC Front Row)

PAC-12

(1) USC 9, (4) Arizona State 5

Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year Emma Wightman, a North Carolina transfer, caused four turnovers as USC defeated Arizona State 9-5 in a defensive battle to advance to the conference championship game in Berkeley, Calif.

Fellow first-team All-Pac-12 selection Catherine Lord also had four caused turnovers, plus five ground balls for the Women of Troy, who never trailed.

(3) Colorado 12, (2) Stanford 11

Sam McGee scored the game-tying and go-ahead goals in the fourth quarter, as Colorado came back from a three-goal deficit to defeat Stanford 12-11.

Pac-12 Championship – (3) Colorado vs. (1) USC, Saturday, May 6, 3 p.m. (Pac-12 Network)

PATRIOT LEAGUE

(1) Loyola 19, (4) Lehigh 3

No. 9 Loyola dominated from start to finish, blowing by Lehigh 19-3 behind a balanced offensive effort that included seven goal scorers. Syndi Black (4 G, 1 A), Georgia Latch (3 G, 2 A) and Emily Willis (2 G, 3 A) led the Greyhounds offensively. Jillian Wilson chipped in four goals and eight draw controls.

Loyola led 14-3 by halftime. The Greyhounds’ defense, ranked second in Division I in scoring defense, blanked Lehigh in the second half. The win was the 39th-straight against Patriot League opponents for Loyola, which is seeking its seventh league tournament crown.

(2) Army 12, (3) Navy 11 (2OT)

The Army-Navy rivalry always delivers, especially with postseason stakes.

Kathleen Sullivan converted a feed from Brigid Duffy with 1:08 remaining in double overtime to lift Army to a 12-11 win over Navy in Baltimore.

Goalie Lindsey Serafine (10 saves) made a clutch stop on Ava Yovino with 42 seconds left in regulation to send the game to overtime and went save-for-save with Emma Richardell (14 saves) in overtime before Sullivan ended the stalemate.

Patriot League Championship – (2) Army vs. (1) Loyola, Saturday, May 6, 2 p.m. (CBS Sports Network)